SUNDAY MONEY: SPENDING; A Nice Stiff Breeze, and a Nice Little Power Bill

By JENNIFER ALSEVER

Published: April 1, 2007

GUS SANSONE has not had to pay an electricity bill in five years, thanks to the 35-mile-an-hour wind gusts that whip past his house on the high desert of San Bernardino County, Calif.

Mr. Sansone owns the 80-foot wind turbine outside his home. And it generates enough energy not only for his swimming pool motor and hot tub, but also for the air-conditioning and other electricity in his 1,600-square-foot home. Since he bought the system, which cost $32,000, from the Bergey Windpower Company in Norman, Okla., he has watched 20 people in his Oak Hills community, about an hour east of Los Angeles, put up their own turbines.

As energy costs rise, more consumers like Mr. Sansone are investing in wind turbines, aiming to take control of their household utilities and to cut their energy bills sharply.

In the past, small wind turbines provided electricity for farmers, boaters and homes that were off the traditional electrical grid. Today, more of the buyers are mainstream consumers who want to supplement, if not entirely replace, traditional energy from power companies, said Ron Stimmel, spokesman for the American Wind Energy Association; he says the market is growing 30 to 40 percent a year.

''People are beginning to look for and find ways to generate their own electricity,'' he said. Concerns over global warming, reliance on foreign oil and rising energy costs, he said, are contributing to the growth.

The latest turbines convert wind into household energy by using wind speeds as low as 9 miles an hour, and they are smaller, quieter and less expensive than older types.

But an investment still requires deep pockets and plenty of land. Most systems require at least a half-acre, and costs can range from $12,000 to $50,000. The good news is that prices have dropped by half in the last five years.

The wind turbines -- some of which measure about 12 feet in diameter -- look like propellers mounted on poles 33 to 100 feet high. The turbine is connected to a home's main circuit breaker panel.

When the wind is blowing, the spinning propeller creates power for the home; when the wind is not blowing, the house relies on energy from the power company. During times of strong winds, a turbine can produce excess energy and. depending on the utility company, can result in energy credits for the owner to use later.

The cost of putting up a wind system can take years, even decades, to recoup, depending on state incentives, available tax credits and the consumer's utility company and location. (Parts of California, Texas and the Midwest typically get some of the strongest winds.)

More state incentives and rebates for alternative energy are helping to spur demand. Mr. Sansone's $32,000 system qualified for a $16,000 rebate from the California Energy Commission as well as credits on his state income tax. Several other states, including Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, offer similar incentives for wind-power purchases. A state-by-state guide with rules and incentives for alternative energy is at dsireusa.org.

Some power companies, like Xcel Energy, offer ''net metering,'' which gives consumers credit or pay for excess wind power generated by their systems. Some utilities install meters that literally run backward when renewable energy is being pushed into the electrical grid.

Taxpayers could soon get credit on their federal returns, too, under legislation introduced in February that would give consumers a one-time $3,000 credit for every kilowatt of their turbine's capacity; the average size is 2 to 10 kilowatts. Another piece of federal legislation would establish rules for consumers to receive compensation for any excess power produce by wind for their power company.

''Energy is on everyone's minds right now,'' said Robert W. Preus, chief executive of Abundant Renewable Energy, a manufacturer in Newberg, Ore., that shipped its first wind turbines last year. ''It's a small market, but I expect enormous growth over the next five years domestically and internationally.''

The concept of small wind turbines is blossoming in Canada, Germany and Spain as well as in the Britain, where rooftop versions are popping up in urban areas despite debate over their efficacy.

Momentum may be building, but not everyone welcomes wind power. Some communities restrict the height of the windmills or ban them.

In San Bernardino County, Calif., where Mr. Sansone lives, some county residents compared the noise from turbines to the sound of jets revving up on a runway. Their complaints ultimately forced county officials to increase permit fees for turbine owners and to require them to notify neighbors before installing one.

Americans can also buy smaller, quieter roof-mounted wind turbines for as little as $1,000, but because these smaller turbines sit closer to the ground, they endure more turbulence and produce less power. Some of these turbines can power just a few light bulbs or perhaps a single microwave.

Technology for more-powerful systems is also improving. Southwest Windpower in Flagstaff, Ariz., teamed with scientists at the National Renewable Energy Lab Department to develop the Skystream 3.7, a sleek 1.8-kilowatt wind turbine that is no louder than an air-conditioner and works with wind speeds as low as 9 m.p.h. when mounted on poles as short as 33 feet. It can power 40 to 80 percent of a typical 2,000-square-foot house, depending on wind speeds, according to Southwest Windpower. Customers can also check wind speeds and energy production online with software provided by the company.

Since it began production in October, Southwest has shipped 450 of the units, which are priced at $12,000. Andy Kruse, the company's chief executive, said he expected to double sales, to $24 million this year.

CARL BALDINO, a textile plant manager from Mullica Hill, N.J., bought a Skystream unit from Southwest Windpower last summer. Mr. Baldino already uses solar panels to provide power to his house, and he earns about $3,500 a year in extra income by selling ''alternative energy credits'' to power companies via the Web site of the New Jersey Clean Energy Program (njcep.com/srec/trading-statistics.html). He also earns an extra $80 a year selling excess solar energy to his power company, Atlantic City Electric.

Mr. Baldino hopes to make even more money with his new wind turbine, which provides about 20 percent of his household energy.

''With rising energy costs, every day and every week that goes by, it's net money in my pocket,'' he said.

Photo: Gus Sansone installed an 80-foot-tall wind turbine system, costing $32,000, outside his home in Southern California. ''We're saving barrels of oil and pollution,'' Mr. Sansone said of the change. (Photo by Ann Johansson for The New York Times)